Although Reese Witherspoon has made a substantial profit from her acting abilities, it is not her film jobs that have helped her build such an astounding net worth.
It turns out that the Legally Blonde star is also involved in a few other projects, which have paid off handsomely over the years.
Witherspoon, 48, has been a familiar face on our screens since the 1990s, but her career took off the following decade when she played elegant legal eagle, Elle Woods.
Even back then, her commercial savvy was evident, as she sneaked a stipulation into her contract for the successful 2001 picture that allowed her to keep her character’s costly outfit.
The 77 pairs of Jimmy Choo shoes she claims to have walked away with, among other opulent items, are clearly not cheap.
As we all know, she has consistently landed huge jobs throughout her career, including her Oscar-winning performance in Walk the Line and, more recently, her work on Apple TV’s The Morning Show.
While balancing performing jobs, she founded her fashion line, Draper James, founded her own reading club, and is on the board of the Children’s Defense Fund.
But her best decision has to be co-founding media firm Hello Sunshine in 2016, which has allowed her to become the ‘world’s richest actress.’.
According to Forbes, she is also one of the richest women in the United States, with an estimated net worth of $400 million, thanks to her woman-focused organization.
According to its website, Hello Sunshine ‘aims to widen perspective and empower women by providing them authorship, encouraging agency, and establishing a platform to enable them to impact culture and the world around them.'”.
The corporation is a major player in the entertainment industry, having produced blockbuster shows including Big Little Lies, The Morning Show, and Little Fires Everywhere.
As a result, Candle Media, led by former Disney executives Kevin A. Mayer and Tom Staggs, bought a controlling share in the firm in 2021 for a whopping $900 million.
In a statement announcing the ‘tremendous’ news, Witherspoon said, “I started this company to change the way all women are portrayed in the media.”
“In recent years, we have seen our purpose prosper via literature, television, cinema, and social media. Today, we’re taking a significant step ahead by working with Blackstone, which will allow us to deliver even more fun, powerful, and illuminating tales about women’s lives throughout the world.”
Forbes stated that she retained at least 18% of the company and allegedly received $120 million in after-tax proceeds from the transaction while continuing to play an important role at Hello Sunshine.
Her net worth has risen to $400 million—just shy of half a billion dollars—thanks to this and the millions she has earned from performing.
She allegedly makes at least $1 million every episode for her TV work, and her pay for film appearances is significantly more.
That’s not to add Witherspoon’s endorsements, advertising, and other projects.
Essentially, she is an extremely wealthy lady.